Water System

--Pullman's Great Artesian Well, courtesy of Whitman County Historical Society

Pullman, dubbed "the Artesian City" in 1890 by the Pullman Herald, once had 20 artesian wells. The abundant supply of water was an important factor in locating the state college here.

In Pullman, all of the municipal and many of the rural residents obtain their drinking water from the Grande Ronde Aquifer. This aquifer is an underground layer of water-bearing permeable rock and unconsolidated materials from which groundwater is extracted. Water levels in the Grande Ronde have historically declined at a rate of between 1 and 2 feet per year for 70 or more years, which makes water conservation and municipal planning very important.